Today, I spent several hours with my ordination group. We met together monthly for three years because we had to as part of our ordination process. Now that we no longer have to get together, we still choose to because of the bonds of trust, affection, and love that we established together. We are diverse in age (30 years separates the oldest from the youngest), church location (rural farming villages to inner cities) and theological background. But our shared experience and love for one another unite us.
One of the members of the group shared that her latest spiritual discipline is to practice really listening to God, in small ways and in large. She said God had spoken to her through dreams, nudges and guided thoughts. I was struck by her discipline. Can't we all benefit from the practice of listening more deeply to and for God? What is it that blocks up our minds and prevents us from being able to fully and completely present to God's voice, that comes to us in a variety of ways.
The practice of fasting is an opportunity to clear the clutter of our lives that is brought on by mindless eating, poor food choices, and cravings for God that mask as cravings for chocolate, coffee or chips. During this period of fasting, have you been able to create space in your life for God to speak? Are you able to stay more spiritually present to God and hear God's voice, whether it comes through thoughts, dreams, Scripture or other people. What is God saying to you in this time of fasting?
Open God, you ask us to rely fully and completely on you. You desire nothing more than for us to conform our will to that of Christ, to let his mind be our mind. Use this time of fasting as a way to attune our hearts and our ears of faith more fully to your presence in our lives. Show us how to better listen to you. Lord, especially reveal to us the needs of our community and how we can respond. Put a fire in our hearts so we can serve our brothers and sisters as you would have us. In Christ, Amen.
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